Study: Online shopping leveling out

Denver -- Study results released Monday by The Integer Group showed that, although online shopping has increased over the last three years, overall it has leveled out.

According to The Checkout, an ongoing shopper behavior study conducted by Integer and M/A/R/C Research, online shopping is level and steady, but boomers continue to increase their online purchases – up 4.5% since 2011.

Millennials, on the other hand, are backing off, as the study revealed that Millennials who said they are purchasing more online is down 7% from 2011.

"Millennials may be feeling the pinch of a still-slow economy and making the decision to watch spending more closely,” said Craig Elston, SVP, insight & strategy, Integer Group. “It could also be that we are starting to reach a plateau in online-shopping adoption."

Even though many shoppers in the survey noted that they are shopping about the same amount online as they were three months ago, there are some interesting shifts in purchase categories, according to the survey.

Since January 2012, online purchase of health and beauty has increased significantly among shoppers aged 50 to 64, growing nearly 12%. The percentage of 18- to 24-year-olds who say they've purchased any products online, even once, has dropped in all categories except books, music, and tickets. Overall, none of these categories saw major growth from 2011 to 2012.

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